“Fly in the ointment” of Governor Denis Pasler

Will the Orenburg SEZ project repeat the history of Titanium Valley?

The team of the Orenburg Governor Denis Pasler is actively promoting a large-scale project for the construction of the Orenburg Special Economic Zone, the total investment in which is estimated at more than 15 billion rubles. In March, the first resident of the SEZ was named – the Orenburg logistics center, which plans to invest 1.7 billion rubles in the construction of a universal warehouse for storing goods. In April, it is planned to consider the next application for the organization of dairy production. However, Pasler’s Orenburg project may repeat the history of another object – the Titanium Valley SEZ, the construction of which he oversaw, heading the government of the Sverdlovsk region. Titanium Valley has found itself at the center of a high-profile corruption scandal involving the arrest of its CEO Artemy Kyzlasov, who last year was found guilty by a court of extorting a multi-million dollar bribe from a representative of a subcontractor. The second defendant in the case was a former deputy minister economy region, Mikhail Shilimanov, who was also convicted. Pasler entrusted control over the construction of the Orenburg SEZ to his protégé, 28-year-old vice-governor Ignat Petukhov, who previously headed the Orenburg Region Development Corporation, whose losses in 2020 alone exceeded 185 million rubles. Over the past three years, Pasler has repeatedly changed the management of the Corporation, which may be associated with regular prosecutorial checks and even the initiation of a criminal case under the article on abuse of power, which consisted in the misuse of funds allocated to support business. Nikita Khilimonchik, who replaced Petukhov as the General Director of the Development Corporation, left his post after another inspection by the supervisory agency, and today manages the construction of the Orenburg SEZ. How far Pasler’s next project meets the expectations of the federal center is a big question, because while the federal government gives the regions an import substitution policy, the Orenburg team is preparing to open another huge warehouse.

Pasler and Petukhov “lure” investors

The head of the Orenburg region, Denis Pasler, and his protégé, who is in charge of economic and investment politics Ignat Petukhov is actively promoting their next project – the Orenburg Special Economic Zone (SEZ). Last December the media reported16 companies will become its residents, and the total volume of investments will be about 15.6 billion rubles, of which 2.5 billion will fall on the share of the region.

As you can see, the issue price has increased by a billion. In March, Orenburg officials called the first resident of the SEZ, whose application was approved by the expert council: the corresponding status will be assigned in April to the Orenburg logistics center, which plans to invest in economy region 1.7 billion rubles and create more than 500 new jobs. clarifiedthat already in the second half of 2022, the company intends to begin construction of a universal warehouse for storing goods with an area of ​​32 thousand square meters, through which more than 1 million tons of cargo will pass annually.

A dairy plant can become a second resident: an enterprise from the Saraktash region, where dairy production operates on the basis of the Krasnogorsky Kolkhoz SPK, will present a corresponding project. The amount of investment has not yet been announced, but knownthat the application will be considered in early April at the next meeting of the expert council. It is also planned to complete the development of the master plan for the SEZ in April. The first persons of the region never tire of emphasizing the importance and priority of the project in the context of the economic crisis.

“Titanium Valley” – a prologue to “Orenburg”?

The SEZ site itself, occupying about 560 hectares, will be built in Orenburg and Orsk. Its launch is scheduled for early 2024. Business proposal sounds tempting: there should be a zero interest rate for property tax, transport and land taxes. Import duties and customs VAT will not be charged, and income tax will be reduced to 2%.

We add that for the Orenburg officials the project is an excellent chance to “master” the next budget billions. Especially when you consider that the price of the issue is growing by leaps and bounds. In addition, do not forget about the money of investors. No wonder the general director of Orenburg region Nikita Khilimonchik He speaks about the need “for every budget ruble to attract 5 private rubles.”

The scale of the plans of the governor and his team, at first glance, can cause respect. That’s just for every barrel of honey there is a fly in the ointment. The fact is that, while still the head of the government of the Sverdlovsk region, Pasler oversaw another, similar and no less large-scale project – the construction of the Titanium Valley SEZ, which was accompanied by a loud corruption scandal. Recall that the total volume of investments in the SEZ in 2016, evaluated 64.5 billion rubles, of which 54.3 billion were to be invested by residents.

However, formally, the former prime minister turned out to be nothing to do with it: the thunder struck after Pasler settled in a leadership position in Orenburg. In February 2020 media reported on the arrest of Artemy Kyzlasov, CEO of Titanium Valley, accused of taking a bribe of 2.5 million rubles. The former deputy minister became the second person involved in the criminal case economy region Mikhail Shilimanov, who acted as intermediary.

As it turns out, the scale corruption at the facility corresponded to the scope of the project. Kyzlasov demanded a representative of the subcontractor OOO Proektnoye Delo received a bribe in the amount of 13 million rubles for the unimpeded signing of acceptance certificates for the work performed, threatening him with an obstacle in transferring funds. The general director was detained when he received part of the amount he required.

For six months after being taken into custody, Kyzlasov, who was under investigation, continued to be the head of the Titanium Valley, and only in August the board of directors of the SEZ satisfied him statement about dismissal with the wording “of one’s own free will.” In July last year, the Oktyabrsky District Court of Yekaterinburg sentenced former CEO to 10 years in a strict regime colony. His accomplice Shilimanov was also charged sentence: the ex-deputy minister went to a colony for nine years.

Proyektnoye Delo LLC, which was at the center of a corruption scandal, did not stay at the facility for a long time: the contract with it was the new management of Titanium Valley terminated unilaterally. An attempt by the former subcontractor to challenge the termination of the contract in court was unsuccessful; moreover, the representatives of the SEZ announced their intention to seek the inclusion of the company in the register of unscrupulous suppliers.

Young talent – Vice-Governor Petukhov

At the time of the arrest of the director general of Titanium Valley, Pasler was already in charge of the Orenburg region. But Kyzlasov took his position in 2011, and already in 2012 It revealedthat the project is being implemented “with a significant delay on infrastructure issues.” In 2015, the press appeared messages about the dismissal threatening Kyzlasov “for failure to plan indicators”, which in the end did not take place. Periodically voiced the issue of lack of funds and increase in the cost of the project. It all ended, as we know, with a high-profile corruption scandal. What processes, in this case, did Prime Minister Pasler control? “Mastering” budget finances by the team of the Sverdlovsk Governor Yevgeny Kuyvashev?

The next breakthrough in the bureaucratic “track record” of Pasler should be the Orenburg SEZ. But won’t Sverdlovsk history repeat itself? This idea is involuntarily suggested by the figure of the project curator – 28-year-old vice-governor Ignat Petukhov, who was appointed to the post in June last year.

The question is, in the implementation of what large-scale projects did the young official take part, who is faced with the task, neither more nor less, to bring the region out of the crisis state? And what heights did the regional development corporation achieve during his relatively short leadership?

In September 2020, based on the results of a prosecutorial audit, a criminal case on abuse of authority related to the misuse of funds allocated for business development in 2016-2019. As it turned out, the companies that received funding soon ceased their activities. No measures were taken to return the money and collect interest, on the contrary, the timing of the return of loans is illegal extendedwhich caused the budget multimillion-dollar losses.

Commenting on what happened, Petukhov hurried emphasizethat he personally does not bear any responsibility for large-scale theft, and the questions of the investigators are addressed to his predecessor Alexander Sazonov. According to him, loans have ceased to be issued “in order to avoid various misunderstandings regarding the effectiveness of their use.” It turns out that he was also unable to provide this very efficiency?

Warehouses instead of import substitution

In December of last year, a few months after Petukhov took the post of vice-governor, the examination. This time it was about a possible violation of labor laws, which consisted in non-payment of salaries to employees. What period was discussed was not specified. Perhaps Nikita Khilimonchik, who replaced Petukhov, was to blame for everything, shortly after the scandal heading SEZ “Orenburg”?

The constant change of leadership of the Development Corporation by Governor Pasler does not solve the problem of its many years of unprofitability. So, in 2020, when Petukhov, who had gained a lot of experience, held the post of CEO, losses departments amounted to 185.1 million rubles with a revenue of 1.9 million. In 2021, the Corporation went negative by 63.8 million with revenue 1.7 million rubles. Isn’t this the best indicator of the ineffective management of both Petukhov himself and his successor Khilimonchik, who are today responsible for the development of the SEZ!

Perhaps Petukhov’s only achievement to date is the consent of Tatyana Bakalchuk, the owner of the Wildberries retailer, to open a logistics center in the Orenburg region.